We Do Things A Little Differently
by onlymystory
Summary: Isaac and Danny don't do Valentine's like normal people. But it works for them anyway.


**Primarily Isaac/Danny. I would call Lydia/Boyd secondary and Derek/Stiles almost a secondary relationship. Written for the Mahealahey Trope Challenge.**

* * *

On the sixth Valentine's Day of Isaac and Danny's relationship, Isaac was having a mild panic attack. They weren't supposed to be celebrating Valentine's Day was the thing. At least not on February 14th. Isaac was breaking the rule for the first time and he was really hoping it didn't come back to bite him in the ass.

Isaac's days to plan Valentine events were January 7th, September 18th, and November 3rd. Danny had July 25th, October 25th, and November 24th. Those are the dates when other Saint Valentines were martyred and after getting lectures for two years from the pack about how just because they don't like Valentine's Day doesn't mean they should boycott it and ruin it for everyone else. So Danny agreed to celebrate St Valentine one day in April.

A few months later, on July 25th, Isaac came home to roses (in a vase, not petals on the ground which is only romantic if you aren't the one cleaning up), champagne and a candlelit dinner. He learned later that Danny had kicked Derek and Stiles out by telling them if they didn't leave he'd audio record them having sex and email the file to Stiles' father.

Danny very sweetly informed Isaac that there was more than one St. Valentine and today was to celebrate one of them. When Isaac finished laughing, he beamed with pride at his boyfriend of over two years, and then made out with Danny in the kitchen until the dinner was so cold they had to reheat everything and turn it into sandwiches.

Two months after that, Isaac made reservations at Danny's favorite Greek restaurant a town over, picked him up from classes, and presented Danny with a framed picture of the two of them at Scott and Allison's wedding that summer.

Danny's surprise only lasted long enough for Isaac to explain that this was the next day a St. Valentine was killed and he figured it was his turn.

It started mostly as a joke. But then they both found that as their time got busier and dates became more about finding time to eat dinner together or sex that wasn't when they could get it that their alternative Valentines became more important. Six days a year on top of birthdays and their anniversary weekend were set aside for special dates.

Isaac usually went full on creative while Danny opted for more traditional romantic gestures. But the full day and night was their time away from everyone else. Even Stiles and Derek made a point to book a hotel on those nights—since Danny had moved into the rebuilt Hale house during college—and give them privacy. Stiles had occasionally remarked that it was really kind of nice since it guaranteed he got a romantic evening too.

The one Valentine's Day they both refused to celebrate however was the one that fell on February 14th. The reason for this was both simple and complex. See, Danny and Isaac technically got together on February 14th. So one would think that it'd be the perfect day to celebrate their love.

If it wasn't a total cliché.

And if two other pack couples didn't share the same anniversary.

Yep. Isaac nearly hurts himself eye-rolling every time he thinks about it. It all started in what would have been the pack's freshman year of college. Scott and Allison were at UC Davis but the rest had stayed behind in Beacon Hills.

Isaac was taking a few classes that interested him at the community college but without any real purpose. Boyd was in classes and training to join the police force, while he and Lydia had chosen to rent a small house on the edge of the preserve and town, just a few minutes from Derek's.

That particular couple had been a surprise to everyone at first but somehow Lydia and Boyd ended up grounding the pack and being the key to turning them from a lost bunch of outcasts looking for someone to save them to the family protecting each other that they were today. Lydia had spent the earlier part of junior year sitting silently at Boyd's table during school. That was the first problem that Isaac had noticed. He was around Scott but when Boyd came back from the Alphas without Erica, he'd gone back to his old solitary table.

Lydia was still Lydia Martin and all that came with that. But when Jackson's parents moved him away and he broke it off for good—out of a desire for Lydia to be happy, not selfish for once—she went through the motions even more than before and withdrew. Isaac knew that while Boyd's love for Erica hadn't been as strong as Lydia's for Jackson; Lydia also only had to say goodbye outside of a moving truck, not mourning at an empty grave.

The pair had developed something of a silent friendship, supporting each other simply by existing. Then one day in biology, Boyd leaned over and kissed Lydia's cheek without any fanfare. Isaac had watched her slip her hand into Boyd's at the end of class and that was that.

If Isaac had to pick the day he started really noticing Danny, he usually said it was then. Before school had let out, Lydia and Boyd had the word spread that there was to be a pack meeting at the loft regardless of what anyone else had to say about it.

That night, Boyd stood strong, like a fighter once again. Lydia paced in front of them and yelled. She called it lecturing but Isaac distinctly remembered it as yelling. Lydia had told Scott to get his head out of his ass and pick a role, beta or omega. She told Allison to do the same, pack hunter or hunter of the pack. Isaac learned later that Lydia went home with Allison and gave Chris Argent the same speech. She informed Peter that if his big contribution since coming back from the dead was to provide sarcastic commentary and be absolutely no help, she'd put him back in the ground. And Lydia had ended by telling Derek that the only person who didn't believe he could learn how to be a good Alpha was himself and that was just ridiculous.

Somewhere in there Lydia had laid out a decent plan to take down the Alphas. It wasn't until they were actually attacking that Deaton, Melissa McCall, Sheriff Stilinski, and three of John's most trusted officers stepped out of their hiding places in the shadows and fired wolfsbane bullets into the Alphas that they realized Lydia only shared part of her plan.

But what Isaac took out of that night was Danny. He had known of Danny sure. Being on the same lacrosse team, same grade, same school etc took care of that. But he'd never really paid attention. As he'd watched Danny express shock at learning about werewolves, and then saw Danny's face harden and his eyes glint as he asked how he could help, Isaac fell head over heels.

Unfortunately Danny had a boyfriend and Isaac had an inherent fear of rejection. So he'd nursed his crush and cherished the friendship he and Danny formed for two years.

That first year after graduation had Danny in San Francisco, majoring in computer science, though he came home most weekends to help Stiles and Lydia.

That particular pairing had surprised everyone too, mostly for what it wasn't than what it was. Stiles got over his crush on Lydia. She took the time to notice his skills. And then they graduated and decided they would not be attending college. Lydia's trust went to her at 18, as did Stiles' share of the life insurance money from his mother's death.

They put the money into the pack and into the town, purchasing publically a long closed diner on the edge of town—perfect for supernatural meetings—turning an abandoned storefront into a coffee shop and bookstore, and opening a small nursery that allowed Stiles to work on his studies of mystical plants without suspicion. Isaac managed the coffee shop while Boyd ran the diner. Not so well known was just how big those inheritances were, nor was it advertised that Lydia was slowly buying out the main streets of Beacon Hills, keeping the original leases but owning the land. Stiles put most of his into the land outside of town, stretching pack territory to keep the people safer.

Isaac's favorite days that first year were the Fridays when Danny would get into town late at night and immediately stop at the café to visit with him. Danny was his best friend. Someday Isaac was convinced that he would be okay with being nothing more.

And then came Valentine's day. Lydia and Boyd of course had a special day planned. Scott and Allison were celebrating out of town. Isaac planned on sitting at home, yelling at cheesy movies and rolling his eyes at the way Derek and Stiles couldn't seem to get their heads out of their asses.

John Stilinski ruined that for him though. The Sheriff marched into the Hale house, dragging Stiles behind him and shoved his kid at Derek, telling Derek that he approved, gave his blessing, whatever he needed to get Stiles to quit sitting around moping. There was more yelling for a while but it boiled down to what everyone already knew. Stiles loved Derek. Derek loved Stiles. End of story. Stiles' parting shot to his father was that he didn't have any room to talk if he didn't have the balls to go ask Melissa McCall out after all this time.

So two new couples were formed on Valentine's Day of 2015.

Isaac quickly chose to give his employees the day off when the noises from the kitchen went from mushy to pornographic. Derek was loud. Really loud. Stiles was expressive.

Isaac was traumatized.

So he went into the café and made himself busy practicing Cupid and heart foam designs in the lattes for different couples. Because he didn't hate Valentine's Day. He was just grumpy from being sexiled and from the fact that it was a date night for Danny and Isaac couldn't even take his mind off the whole day by getting laid because sleeping with someone on Valentine's Day without intending more was asking for a disaster.

Once the café closed, Isaac chose the completely mature action of flopping onto one of the couches, making himself a generous Irish coffee with the whiskey the Sheriff pretended wasn't under the counter as long as it was shared once in a while, and pouting over his single and unsatisfied status.

Until at 10:50pm, a pounding on the door roused Isaac.

"I know you're in there, Isaac, open the door!" yelled Danny, sounding furious.

Isaac opened the door, a little slow from the alcohol and flirting with tipsy. "Thought you were on a date."

"I was," snapped Danny. "But Mark's a fucking asshole."

"I could have told you that."

Danny glared at him. "You have told me that. Are you drinking Irish coffee? Make me one."

"You trying to take the asshole title from Mark tonight or something?" asked Isaac. It wasn't like he minded taking care of his best friend but he didn't deserve to be treated like shit while doing it.

"I'm sorry," muttered Danny.

"Want to talk about it?" offered Isaac, accepting the apology.

Danny sighed. "He kept doing that thing where he'd order for us instead of asking my opinion and then what he ordered was stuff I either hate or am allergic to. And I've told him to stop being so controlling but he just doesn't let up. After what he said tonight it was just the last straw."

"What did he say?"

Danny hesitated.

Isaac handed him the drink and sat on the couch, near Danny but not right next to him. "I promise not to go kill him if you tell me."

"Mark said I should just do whatever he said because if not I'd end up a lonely spinster like my best friend," admitted Danny.

"Oh," said Isaac quietly.

"So I told him he could shove his opinion up his ass because his asshole would probably appreciate the company and that if I ever thought I had a chance with my best friend I'd consider myself the luckiest guy in the world." Danny immediately started chugging his coffee after blurting out that sentence.

Isaac laughed at the first part and then registered the second. "You never said you felt that way."

"What was I supposed to say? That I've been in love with you pretty much since you walked me home the night I found out about werewolves? Or that the best part of my week is Fridays when I come home and you're the first person I see? Or how Tuesday mornings when I drive back to school the smile I get with my 'for the road coffee' is what keeps me going all week?" Danny set his coffee down on a nearby table and looked earnestly at Isaac. "You're the best part of my life, Isaac. And when we're done here I will put my feelings away in the corner of my heart that I keep them locked in and never bring it up again. But just once you should know that the reason every other guy I've dated has been found wanting is because my standard is you."

Isaac lunged across the couch and kissed Danny, hard and fast and hungry as hell.

Danny froze for half a second but adjusted before Isaac could pull away, sliding his hands up to grip Isaac's hips and pushing back against him. Isaac deepened the kiss, tongue insistent at Danny's lips and he let out a tiny moan of happiness when Danny opened his mouth and let him in.

At some point during the kissing, Isaac's hands wandered down and tugged their pants off. He had a hand around both of their dicks, stroking in some semblance of a rhythm as Danny kissed along his collarbone, before he even registered that this was real.

"Jesus, you're perfect," breathed Isaac.

"Only.." Danny thrust his hips up and fucked harder into Isaac's fist. "…with you."

Those three words had Isaac coming with a shout that he muffled in Danny's hair and Danny followed a few short strokes later.

They cleaned up just enough to ensure that Lydia wouldn't yell at them in the morning when she opened and made their way up the stairs to the studio apartment above the café that was utilized most often by Isaac when he closed and opened the next day instead of driving home. He had a suspicion that with Derek and Stiles together, he'd be using the space more now.

But tonight his only thought was getting Danny up there with him. It probably would have gone faster if they didn't keep undressing each other as they went up the stairs. Isaac blew Danny against the apartment door and fucked him on the bed a few minutes later.

There were a few more muttered words of joy before they both passed out.

When Isaac woke up the next morning was when the panic set in. How stupid could he have been? Danny was upset last night and maybe he meant some of what he said but he could also have just been horny and Isaac was there and this wasn't at all how Isaac wanted things to start.

"You're panicking," said Danny, placing a hand on Isaac's shoulder. He sat up to lean against Isaac's back, tucking his chin as he looked at Isaac. "Why?"

"Scared," admitted Isaac.

"Scared of what?" asked Danny, quiet but serious.

"That this was just about you being upset last night and that now I'm going to have to be brave and watch you leave and somehow try to forget."

Danny's voice was on the edge of dangerous. "Do you really think I'd do that? I need you, Isaac. I need you so much."

"I know," said Isaac, voice quivering. "Everybody needs me. Derek needed me to start a pack and Lydia needed me to run the café and Scott needed me as a friend. All anyone ever does is need me."

"Is that such a bad thing?" asked Danny cautiously.

Isaac rubbed a fist against his eyes. Traitors. "It's just that it sometimes feels like no one wants me. I don't want to be around because I'm useful. I want you to want me." He twisted a little to look at Danny, barely noticing the way Danny still tangled their feet together. "Because I want all of you. Even if you just needed me to be there last night, I want to be the one who doesn't say anything at dinner so you can order your favorite foods and then I'll order your other favorites just so you don't really have to choose. I want to make your favorite caramel latte and then kiss the sweetness off your lips a moment later. I want everything, Danny. But I know that it's not the same. I'm the one everyone needs for a moment."

"You're wrong!" said Danny, nearly yelling the words. "Isaac, you have to talk to people and tell them how you feel. And don't you dare act like I'd be that kind of an asshole ever again. I absolutely want you. I need you like I need air but I want you even more. So you will not second guess yourself like that again. Not around me. Not ever with me."

Danny was blinking back his own tears by the time he was done. He leaned forward and kissed Isaac. "Please don't push me away. I don't want to go."

Isaac swallowed around the lump in his throat. "I was afraid it was the whiskey and the bad date and the pressure of Valentine's Day that caused last night."

Danny squirmed forward between Isaac's legs, reaching his hands around to tangle in Isaac's curls as he pulled himself closer. "Then forget Valentine's Day."

"What?"

"Last night can be a night where we both found someone to have really amazing sex with. Today, this morning, can be the start of us." Danny pressed a feather light kiss against Isaac's cheek. "Isaac Lahey, will you please be my boyfriend, starting right now, Saturday February 15th?"

Isaac laughed and nodded at the same time. "I would love to be your boyfriend, Danny." He kissed Danny for a long moment before pulling away in laughter. "Oh god. We definitely needed to start today."

Danny gave him a puzzled look. "Why?"

"Because we aren't the only couple that got together last night."

"John finally ask Melissa out or did she get tired of waiting on him to make a move and do it herself?"

Isaac shook his head. "Stiles yelled at John to go for it. After John practically threw Stiles at Derek."

"What?!" Danny's jaw dropped.

"Yep. I was at the café because they started having sex in the kitchen."

"Do I even want to know?" asked Danny with a laugh.

"Let's just leave it as I'm pretty sure Stiles is going to be the alpha in bed if Derek has anything to say about it and then never discuss it again," answered Isaac.

Danny burst into laughter and let his head collapse on Isaac's shoulder. "Oh we are all pieces of work."

His laughter faded away as Isaac started kissing along the back of Danny's neck before moving to his shoulder. Danny raised his head up again, one hand turning Isaac back to him so he could kiss him, not caring about anything but the taste of Isaac against his tongue.

After that, they celebrated their anniversary on February 15th. The Stilinski men could keep Valentine's Day for themselves.

Now, six years after that night, Isaac stood in the café's entryway, waiting for Danny to arrive.

It was only a few minutes later that Danny walked through the door, planning on helping run the café for the night as was their tradition.

Danny looked curiously at the cups of coffee in Isaac's hands and the small candles lighting up the café. The blinds were all shut so no one could see inside but a romantic glow filled the room. Isaac handed one to Danny and sat down on their couch. Danny sat beside him. "What happened to we don't celebrate normal Valentine's Day?"

Isaac set his coffee aside. Danny took a sip of his, Irish coffee with a hint of caramel, just like it was six years ago.

"Well the thing is, six years ago I made a cup of coffee for my best friend," began Isaac. "That cup of coffee led to waking up in bed with the man I thought I was in love with. But it's been over the last six years that I've realized I knew nothing of love then, because you've taught me every day that it's possible to love and be loved more deeply than I ever dreamed."

Isaac reached a hand out and took Danny's hand.

Danny's eyes brimmed with tears as his mind started guessing where this was going.

"The last time we sat on this couch on Valentine's Day, I ended up with hot sex for the night and a boyfriend for the next six years." Isaac opened his other hand to reveal a simple gold band. "This time I was hoping for a fiancé."

"Isaac," breathed Danny.

"Danny Mahealani," continued Isaac. "Will you please be forever mine?"

It was Danny's turn to fly the few feet across the couch and kiss Isaac. "Yes, yes, you cheesy, beautiful man, yes."

Isaac kissed him back, laughing and inwardly cheering. When they stopped kissing for a moment, he slipped the ring onto Danny's finger and showed the other that he'd bought for himself. Screw girls being the only ones who got engagement rings, had been Isaac's thought when he bought them. He wanted everyone to know Danny was his and he was Danny's.

"You know the pack is going to have a field day with this," said Danny.

Isaac shrugged. "Yeah. I guess we don't do Valentine's all that differently after all."


End file.
